Some of the queries are just weird. Occasionally, they're intrusive and in questionable taste.

Following the storm surrounding Miami Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland asking then-Oklahoma State wide receiver Dez Bryant if his mother was a prostitute, for which Ireland later apologized, NFL rookies at minicamps last weekend told The Associated Press that they fielded some oddball inquiries from team executives before last month's draft.

Cincinnati Bengals fourth-round pick Geno Atkins said one team -- he couldn't recall which -- asked him about his sexual orientation.

"The only unusual question I got was if I was straight or gay," said Atkins, a Georgia defensive tackle whose father, Gene, played 10 seasons in the NFL. "And that was about it.

"'McDonald's or Burger King?' I think 'pillow or blanket?' was another one," Atkins added. "Those were the strange, unusual ones I got. I was like, 'What does that have to do with football?' I think they were kind of trying to loosen me up a little bit."

Or tighten him up. The interviews are designed to test a young player's demeanor, as much as a 40-yard dash is used to measure his speed. So potential draft picks must be prepared for outlandish questions, even if they never get them.

They also must be ready to get baited.

"Some of the interviews were different," said Dallas Cowboys second-round selection Sean Lee, a linebacker from Penn State. "Like I had one team that really came and criticized me and the school I was at, and they're really trying to just get you fired up. They're really just using different tactics to try to see you face adversity, how you react to somebody getting on you.

"That was probably the most unusual thing I had, somebody came at me and said, 'I've never seen a guy from Penn State make plays.' Really, you just have to keep your cool and come back with passionate but respectful answers."

Most teams begin the interviewing process at the NFL Scouting Combine in February, when a player might meet with 12 or more clubs in one day. It's a monotonous process for the collegians, and sometimes just as tiresome for the front-office executives conducting the sessions.

Still, there's a certain protocol -- something that Ireland admittedly violated with Bryant, who was suspended for most of the 2009 season for lying to the NCAA about his activities with Deion Sanders, an NFL Network analyst and former NFL player.

"My job is to find out as much information as possible about a player that I'm considering drafting," Ireland said in a statement released by the Dolphins. "Sometimes that leads to asking in-depth questions. Having said that, I talked to Dez Bryant and told him I used poor judgment in one of the questions I asked him. I certainly meant no disrespect and apologized to him.

"I appreciate his acceptance of that apology, and I told him I wished him well as he embarks on his NFL career."

Others embarking on NFL careers said they experienced nothing like the Bryant-Ireland incident.

"No, nothing that I just wanted to go Incredible Hulk on somebody," said Cowboys safety Akwasi Owusu-Ansah, a fourth-round pick from Division II Indiana-Pennsylvania......

However, again in the context of the conversation that has been provided in reports, it wasn't as if Ireland randomly asked the question. It came up in a natural progression of questions. Perhaps Ireland could have asked "what did your mom do for your dad" rather than ask if she was a prostitute, but still the point stands. The context changes the severity of the issue.

I'm more bothered by the racial question tossed at the "white" running back.

Yep. No one's talking about Gehart who was actually asked racial questions.

Quote:

Race shouldn’t be an issue, of course, but Toby Gerhart can’t help but believe that it has colored the opinions of at least some potential employers.

“One team I interviewed with asked me about being a white running back,” Gerhart says. “They asked if it made me feel entitled, or like I felt I was a poster child for white running backs. I said, ‘No, I’m just out there playing ball. I don’t think about that.’ I didn’t really know what to say.”

A lot of people sit and wonder why Parcells and his people have become so good at drafting. It's because they get down and dirty. For them, nothing is out of bounds. Does it make what Ireland said right? No, not in my opinion. But I'm glad that our staff is willing to go that extra mile.

None of this makes it right. I think the Comish is gonna step in so the league doesnt go thru this again.

I agree. The commish must step in and do somethnig. These players shouldn't be asked insane questions. There is no problem with an in-depth interview process but you can't cross the line.

I would agree with this only if you were advocating that the same steps should be made against players trash talking during the game. There is FAR more of that going on out there than FO people mis-stepping and public apologies were made.

I think Dez should have just kept his mouth shut. This all puts more focus on his family problems. His mom now wants an apology for it, but I think she should apologize to us for being arrested twice for selling crack cocaine ... and as recently as last year. I despise people who are out there trying to sell my kid that highly addictive poison. At least, as a prostitute she would have only been hurting herself.

None of this makes it right. I think the Comish is gonna step in so the league doesnt go thru this again.

I agree. The commish must step in and do somethnig. These players shouldn't be asked insane questions. There is no problem with an in-depth interview process but you can't cross the line.

I would agree with this only if you were advocating that the same steps should be made against players trash talking during the game. There is FAR more of that going on out there than FO people mis-stepping and public apologies were made.

Trash talking among the players will never make its way to the comissioners office because it will never be proved. These players do have an unwritten code & I dont think anyone of them will tattletale on another for something said in the heat of a game at the line of scrimmage. Unless Goodell actually hears something that maybe a microphone picks up , while trash talking might not be correct also , there is little that can be done. If this questioning keeps up the players will rally , get the union behind them & changes will be made.

Trash talking among the players will never make its way to the comissioners office because it will never be proved. These players do have an unwritten code & I dont think anyone of them will tattletale on another for something said in the heat of a game at the line of scrimmage. Unless Goodell actually hears something that maybe a microphone picks up , while trash talking might not be correct also , there is little that can be done. If this questioning keeps up the players will rally , get the union behind them & changes will be made.

There are these guys down on the field that wear black and white stripes, though they are not zebras, just slightly more intelligent.

They would be able to listen to this so-called trash talking and communicate it to the commish.

Leave that political correctness crap off the football field. This is FOOTBALL not Women Tennis. Guys are going to trash talk and that's fine. I agree though, in the interview room, treat is the same as any other professional business; keep the questions on point and away from personal attacks and ridiculous statements. When these players get cut by the team or traded, we call it 'just business'. So if that part of it is business, it should be treated the same as any other. On the field though, let them play football and talk smack.

Leave that political correctness crap off the football field. This is FOOTBALL not Women Tennis. Guys are going to trash talk and that's fine. I agree though, in the interview room, treat is the same as any other professional business; keep the questions on point and away from personal attacks and ridiculous statements. When these players get cut by the team or traded, we call it 'just business'. So if that part of it is business, it should be treated the same as any other. On the field though, let them play football and talk smack.

Correct but we're talking about commissioner intervention. The notion that the commish should intervene on something like the Ireland incident is absurd.

I think Dez should have just kept his mouth shut. This all puts more focus on his family problems. His mom now wants an apology for it, but I think she should apologize to us for being arrested twice for selling crack cocaine ... and as recently as last year. I despise people who are out there trying to sell my kid that highly addictive poison. At least, as a prostitute she would have only been hurting herself.

I agree Big Dave, she's trying to put herself up on a pedestal because she's a crack addict instead of a prostitute. Give me a break! I'm sorry but if it stinks like one, floats in the bowl like one, and looks like one, then it probably is one!

Ok I see how wee could incorperate this into the whole tied going into overtime situation. Instead of going into overtime to settle a tied game at the end of regulation. The commish should mike all of the players and the coaches and whenever they use improper language a fine is assessed and a running total displayed as a graph or meter is kept. At the end of the game if tied the team with the less fines would be the winner.

Leave that political correctness crap off the football field. This is FOOTBALL not Women Tennis. Guys are going to trash talk and that's fine. I agree though, in the interview room, treat is the same as any other professional business; keep the questions on point and away from personal attacks and ridiculous statements. When these players get cut by the team or traded, we call it 'just business'. So if that part of it is business, it should be treated the same as any other. On the field though, let them play football and talk smack.

Correct but we're talking about commissioner intervention. The notion that the commish should intervene on something like the Ireland incident is absurd.

Agree with the fact that this is football and that these guys should be able to ask whatever questions they want. This is a test of their character... nothing more. I'm sure there are plenty of people who face weird questions in interviews all over the world... not just in football.

IMO all questions comes down to "How the person takes the question asked to them". You can throw the context of the question in there but it's up to that person to say, hay that question is wrong or I dont like the context of the question. Here are 2 examples of questions I was asked and I got mad at only 1 of them, It was how this person asked me the question. 1) "Do black people get hotter in the summer than white people"? 2) "Why don't you act like some of the other black people that work here"? Yes these were real ?'s not a joke, but like I said I only took 1 of them to be wrong to say, but I did answer both of them. So it's always up to the other person you are talking to and if they fill that it was a wrong question to be asking, and the context of how it was taken.

Both questions are wrong - neither is good - but if you have to compare apples-to-apples, asking about someone's sexuality is much more personal and objectionable than whether or not their mother is a prostitute when it is already known their father is a pimp. The only reason this story is not bigger is because the player kept his mouth shut about which GM/coach/whoever asked him the question. Bryant was a crybaby here and Ireland did not deserve the backlash he received - no matter what side you are on in regards to the question.